Stretch Your Baht

[kahuna]

But the Hello Boy they tried  to convince us was a ladyboy did like you very much as I recall...

But then so did the tattooed boy...But we won't mention that encounter...

BTW...The Big Jimbo tells me he will return for a New Year's celebration and has invited me for a drink at his favorite bar for which I will no doubt be expected to pay...

But I'll just wear ear plugs and very dark glasses...

[PigDogg]

(Stogie @ Dec. 21 2008,01:25) The best thing you can do to save money living in Thailand is to make a sensible and informed decision on the apartment/house that you rent.

This is a big ticket item and an opportunity to economize.  I think most guys who live here eventually get it right.

But it's an area in which one may not want to economize too much.  An expat probably spends more time at home than a tourist so you need to be happy with your living situation.

You need to be happy with general quality of your lodging. It needs to be in a location that works for you.  And there may be some special dealbreakers such as lack of wifi, swimming pool, or safe.

There's lots of low end housing available starting at around 4K/mo in Pattaya, as well as unacceptable places starting at 1.5/mo.  Acceptable places at these prices tend to be in a location where you'll need a motobike.   So if you know you want a motobike (I don't) your geographical possibilties increase.  The low priced housing is especially good for a guy who wants a "base of operations" and wants to travel around a bit yet have a place to store his stuff.  

I think a good approach for a newly arrived expat is to stay in a cheap hotel for a few days and look around at lots of places, some of which he will have already known about through the internet.  Then move to a place where you are renting month by month.  I don't think it's a good idea for a new guy to commit himself for more than a month.

But going for super low rentals at the expense of comfort and security is probably not the right choice for most.   Only buying one less ladydrink a day can allow you to live in a nice enough place rather than a shithole firetrap with a thai toilet.

[Stogie]

(kahuna @ Dec. 22 2008,16:48) But it does have cheap beer and very loud bad music...

Thanks for that. Another dump I'll never go to... (a bit like Phuket, then!)

[kahuna]

(Stogie @ Dec. 25 2008,14:43)

(kahuna @ Dec. 22 2008,16:48) But it does have cheap beer and very loud bad music...

 Thanks for that. Another dump I'll never go to... (a bit like Phuket, then!)  

Yep...The kind of very loud off key mispronounced word singing that we all enjoy...Especially those who also love Phuket...

The incident I referred to was kinda funny though and says something about the state of the high season trade in Pattaya these days...

I had gone there with Panzer to have a drink with a friend who doesn't like ladyboys but who does love cheap beer and short fat ugly GGs...Which abound in this bar...

And since he has frequent drinking miles in this bar, he called the mamasan or whatever over and told her that Panzer and I liked ladyboys and not GGs...

Unfortunately he didn't use the word ladyboy but instead used katoey...We here know that the two are not necessarily interchangeable, but even though he is a long-term resident of LOS, apparently he didn't...

So after a few words with one of the many manasans in training and a finger to the lips which we were told to mean, don't say anything too loud because katoeys are not allowed in this bar, a boy appeared (the welcome boy) and although he had longer than normal hair for a Thai boy was clearly not a ladyboy and I doubt if he was even a katoey...However, the mamasan was apparently willing to give up his ass for a few extra cheap beer purchases...

Business must indeed be good...

We laughed and left...

[PanzerPorn]

Actually the place itself is pretty ladyboy friendly, brought a couple of lbs from Walking there to have a few cheap drinks whit my straight drunk buddy and the staff was very poilite and friendly whit my guests.
All those ugly girls were amazed by the quality of my purchase.
Not the same for the old geezers sitting whit old and fat ggs but having those scary looks from them was the purpose of my visit.

[PigDogg]

Almost everyone can afford to take a trip to Thailand.

1) Fly for free

An example is getting 30K free miles with United by getting a credit card.  Then if you have 10K dollars you open a brokerage account with Fidelity and get 15K FF miles(or 50K dollars and get 25K free miles).

You have to keep the money in for 9 months though.  Don't have to buy mutual funds, you can buy CDs if u like.

Then repeat the process with TDAmeritrade.

So you have 30+15+15= 60 for a free flight.  Or
30+25+25=80 and you're already working on your second free flight.

Btw on 60K United miles you can go to both Thailand and Bali on the same free ticket using Star Alliance partner airlines.

2)  Now if you're financially challenged and unlikely to be going to Thailand 2-3 times a year then I urge you to make your trip as long as possible.  The "extra" days don't cost much.

You can get a nice enough place in Pattaya for 10K baht a month or about 300 USD.

Other than airfare and lodging then there's food which is cheap.  And booze and ladies.   If you want to economize you can limit yourself to one longtime a day so you're getting laid when you go to sleep and when you wake up.

If you can cut out wasteful spending at home and by doing so save 5 dollars a day for a year, and get a free flight, you can spend a month in Pattaya and shag a different girl everyday.

This is a very low budget holiday.  Most guys will want to spend more, but you don't have too.

But the point I want to make is that the "extra days" are not that expensive as you're paying a monthly rate for your room.  Maybe you don't need a girl every night if you're staying for a month or more. Your discretionary daily spending can be as low as you want.

[PigDogg]

This one is more for the expats because a guy on a two week holiday does not have to be as careful with his spending.

It's good to be able to find a bar that's cheap.  But not just cheap because there's plenty of cheap bars.  It must be a bar that you like; that you'd still go to even if the price was doubled.

Question that was on the recent FAB (Femboy Aptitude Test):

Nana Plaza is to BigDogs as Sunee Plaza is to.......................

WTF is this about?  One of the best cheap charlie bars in all of Pattaya for femboy lovers.

Buren Boy has discovered the Minimart 24 across Soi VC from the Forest House.  It is a minimart that has seating outside perhaps for 10 people.  It's at one of the three exits to Sunee so many of the femboys pass by to and from work somewhat like BigDogs though BigDogs is not really all that cheap.

Since no boys work there it's hassle free zone with no unwanted attention.  A nice bar to have a chinwag with a mate and watch the world go bye (bi).  But many walk by or stop in store afterwork so 1 AM is prime time to arrive.

Beer (Acha) starts at 20 baht.      

Small Changs are 25 and large Changs are 40.

They even give you the beer in a condom!

Soft drinks are 15 baht which is slightly more than the 13 baht you'd pay in 7/11.

Singha is quite high at 32 baht (lots of bars can be found with 35 baht Singha) but is an option for those with money to burn.  Gawd only knows how much a Heineken is.

You always hear about the losers sucking down their beers outside of 7/11 but that is not this scene.  Just as good as the fancier bar across the street; actually better IMO.

[perth_couple]

(bumblebee @ Dec. 21 2008,18:53) There are loads of bars on/ off second road and  soi Buakhao where you can get beer from 40 to 60 baht.

A really cheap place for eats is Sailor Bar on soi 8, For example snitzel and fried potatoes/ fries/mash for 80 baht.  Also do big cocktails for 60 baht, strong enough, not watered down rubbish.

Plenty more places if you have time to walk around.

Sailor bar is a real 'sleeper' of a place.. Its super laid back, cheap and right in the heart of the action in that area..

I love the joint for a quiet beer and people watching

Oh and the number of girls I have seen drop in for one of those cheap cocktails after work in the afternoon!

[EyeMahk]

(PigDogg @ Dec. 31 2008,00:40) Buren Boy has discovered the Minimart 24 across Soi VC from the Forest House. It is a minimart that has seating outside perhaps for 10 people. It's at one of the three exits to Sunee so many of the femboys pass by to and from work somewhat like BigDogs though BigDogs is not really all that cheap.

Since no boys work there it's hassle free zone with no unwanted attention. A nice bar to have a chinwag with a mate and watch the world go bye (bi). But many walk by or stop in store afterwork so 1 AM is prime time to arrive.

Beer (Acha) starts at 20 baht.

This is a good tip, I will check this place out. At 20 baht, I can even buy PigDogg a drink!!

I actually like Acha (Archa) beer - better than all the other Thai beers, believe it or not. I have yet to find a bar in Pattaya that serves it.

[EyeMahk]

Not sure this belongs in this thread, but ...

As many know, the way to save money getting to Pattaya is to take the bus from Ekkamai. I think it is 121 baht. I did this a couple of times, but didn't like the space for baggage on board the bus. I usually bring a bag that is the size of a large backpack, and there is very little room for a bag under the seat, and I didn't want to put my bag below in the hold. What to do? Take a taxi for 900-1100 baht? No!

Buy two seats on the bus. Double the fare, but no one will sit next to you and you can put your bag on the seat, or on the floor in front of the seat. Be prepared to tell a couple of people "no" when they ask to sit there. A conductor will check your tickets on board when they do their "count".

240 baht is the total cost saving you 700-900 baht over a taxi A I'm convinced that this is much safer than a speeding taxi with a driver who wants to get back to Bangkok ASAP.

Finally, outside Ekkamai bus station is a "restaurant" with tables and chairs set up, and tasty rice and meat dishes for 25-30 baht each. Good place to go to kill time before the bus ride. Eat it there though, you cannot bring "to go" cooked food (like rice, etc.) on the bus.

[PigDogg]

(PigDogg @ Dec. 30 2008,21:40) Minimart 24

A little more about this place:

Small SangSom bottle 120 baht
Small Mekong bottle 80 baht
1.25 litre Coke 27 baht
Soda Water 10 baht
Ice 6 baht
Tip None expected

There is seating for 14 people outside

[burnt_out]

hi Guys, not sure if this is place for this but....
I'm looking to budget for a 16week trip next autumn winter again. In the past I've gone pretty hard(hence my nick) I'm looking to do it more like BB, as I meet up with him (good lad) a few other guys who were staying for LT in LOS.

So my question is could you do 16 weeks in LOS (Pattaya) on 230-250euros per week and still have fun? I've done some sums and it seems doable, is anyone doing it right now or has done in the past? As I'd be there for quite a long time it would be a marathon and not an extended sprint as I've done in the past.

Normally I end up doing around 80-90euros per day, that adds up to a lot of coin when there for 6-8 weeks.

Any comments would be appreciated...
cheers guys

[geosight]

as stogie says in a earlier post, the best thing you can do is to sort out your living arrangement . Most people don't realize that apart from the down right cheap Thai housing , renting anything half decent in Thailand is down right expensive and right up there with the western world . I wouldn't be worried about victuals or transport !

[PigDogg]

(burnt_out @ Jan. 15 2009,04:24) So my question is could you do 16 weeks in LOS (Pattaya) on 230-250euros per week and still have fun?

Yes!

But of course you can't spend like a tourist.

If you're rent is 10K baht a month then that leaves 1000 baht a day for discretionary spending.  

What makes this plan work is that your "extra days" aren't that expensive.  There are days that you might spend just 100 baht for food and 100 baht (plus a 50 baht tip) for a massage.

Getting a good deal on your living accomodation is crucial. You will probably be spending more time in your room than when on holiday so it must be a place you like, maybe with a pool or free wifi.

But there's lots of good deals to be found in Pattaya as long as it's not the peak Christmas-New Year's season.

[burnt_out]

Cheers PD, I've spent some time around Pattaya the last few years. And saw apartments that were pretty reasonable for the price, I'm not sure what kind of places Geosight is refering to, sounds quite high end.

I was looking at around 11,000bht a week, depending on exchange rate.(46bht:euro atm)
Accommodation: 300-350bht per day
Food: 300bht per day
Beer: 500bht (not huge drinker)

Company: 3000bht a week
Laundry: 200bht a week

Leaving around 4-5000bht a month for any other stuff???

I could imagine that, it wouldn't be a holiday as my last trips have been but I'm looking for some where to escape the European winter.
OK so it ain't "living like a rock-star" but do able?

Any less a struggle?
Just have to look into visa, border runs, etc...
BB I'll PM you no doubt in the future, but no stress on it, loooooong way off yet.

PS Juri have a good one my friend, looking forward to a short TR, say hi to Karl (ezy) from me...